War, What Is It Good For? Absolutely Nothing.

Deja vu, it seems we’ve been here before. The scenario is identical — shortly before elections, winter time, surging costs in living expenses. What better way to take the people’s minds off of the true cause of their suffering and boost national solidarity?

Operation Cast lead commenced on December 28, 2008, just a little more than a month prior to the 2009 elections. Operation Pillar of Defense was launched Wednesday, approximately two months prior to the Israeli 2013 elections. Coincidence? Call me cynical but my better judgement tells me otherwise.

In 2008 prior to the elections Prime Minister Ehud Olmert was facing corruption charges and Israeli citizens were by-and-large not pleased with the state of the economy and growing costs in food, water, housing as well as gasoline prices; not to mention stagnant wages. Today we find ourselves in an identical reality with a prime minister and political party who over the last four years have done virtually nothing to ease the suffering of the economically disenfranchised.

So what does Netanyahu and his warmongers do? Convince the populace there exist this grave threat from the outside–the boogeyman Hamas whom we all need protection from. We are all facing imminent danger and require Daddy Netanyahu’s benevolent shield, not to save us from the perils of poverty but rather terrorists from the Gaza strip.

Addressing a group of foreign reporters, Netanyahu said, “The world needs to understand that Israel has the right and duty to defend its citizens. Our enemies seek to wipe us off the face of the earth.”

For starters, this statement is so farfetched and disingenuous it would be laughable if it weren’t so profane. Even in their wildest dreams Hamas neither has the capability nor military might to wipe Israel off the face of the earth. Since fighting began on Wednesday the IDF (Israeli Defense Force) has struck 200 targets in Gaza–all of which it claims to be terror hubs. In comparison 110 rockets from Gaza have been launched towards southern Israel with the majority being intercepted and the rest exploding in open areas.

There is no doubt by the time Operation Pillar of Defense concludes there will be massive casualties, primarily in Gaza. While Israel will have suffered some deaths as well it will be miniscule in comparison to the devastation the people of Gaza will experience. And when it’s all said and done Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will emerge a protector of his people and strong on defense. He will be re-elected another term and almost everyone will have forgotten the cost of gasoline is almost 8 NIS a liter (almost $8/gallon) and a third of Israelis cannot make ends meet and pay their bills. In the end we the people of Israel will lose, the old regime will maintain its status quo and their will be little to no outcry from the international community over Israel’s war crimes in Gaza.

“Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired, signifies in the final sense a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed.” ~ Dwight D. Eisenhower